Friday, December 24, 2010

Johnny Bower and Honky the Christmas Goose

Exactly 45 years ago, Maple Leaf goaltender Johnny Bower was approached by a CBC producer to make a Christmas record. Although hesitant, he soon recorded Honky the Christmas Goose with the help of his nine year old son Johnny Jr. and some neighbourhood kids. The record sold 40,000 copies during Christmas 1965, the proceeds of which were donated to charity.

The Christmas break in the NHL is a good time look back on the year that was. The following are the top NHL scorers from last years Christmas break to now. (GP-G-A-PTS)

Sidney Crosby 80-58-65-123

Steven Stamkos 80-57-51-108

Henrik Sedin 78-21-87-108

Daniel Sedin 77-39-66-105

Alex Ovechkin 80-38-66-104

Martin St.Louis 80-36-62-98

Niklas Backstrom 82-29-64-93

Brad Richards 80-30-59-89

Alex Semin 79-44-43-87

Eric Staal 76-39-46-85

The 123 points would represent a career season for Crosby, and Ovechkin's 38 goals would be by far his lowest full-season total.